On Campus: Ashland's Curtis making a healthy return to the ice

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Jan 26, 2014 at 10:00 PMJan 26, 2014 at 10:23 PM

By Craig GilvargDaily News staff

Pat Curtis had a decision to make.Actually, when it came down to it, it wasn't much of a decision at all. The Ashland native, now in his junior year playing for the Hamilton College men's hockey team, had spent the entirety of his first two seasons in perpetual pain.Curtis was born with a bipartite patella in his left knee, a condition that causes the kneecap, instead of fusing together, to separate into two separate bones. It's not an uncommon condition, but one that can lead to discomfort in the leg, particularly in athletes when the bones grind against eachother.Though the condition never bothered Curtis through his time playing at the youth and high school levels, it had become a recurring issue by the time he touched the ice at Hamilton.It didn't seem to have any adverse impact on his production. Curtis found a niche on the second line for the Continentals, compiling 33 points (13 goals, 20 assists) through his first two seasons. Still, he was playing through severe pain, and had limited mobility."I'm not really one to make excuses," said Curtis. "I don't think it affected me."But the pain had to go, that much was clear. Surgery to remove the lower piece of the bone was the only option. And so, a few weeks after Hamilton fell in the first round of the postseason against Bowdoin, Curtis went under the knife.The procedure was relatively straightforward, but the recovery wasn't easy. It required a long, difficult rehab process. It cut into Curtis' preseason workouts, and he was even in danger of missing the first few weeks of the season."It was a tough decision for him," said Hamilton coach Rob Haberbusch. "He knew already that the rehab, it was going to affect the beginning of the season and his training over the summer and he was kind of hemming and hawing, but he was hurting a lot. He took the plunge and got it done."Curtis spent the summer dedicated to his rehab, motivated to take the ice with his teammates when they opened their season at Amherst on Nov. 15. With two weeks to go before the puck dropped, he was finally cleared for full contact."It was a lot of time spent doing physical therapy and kind of re-strengthening my left leg and my lower body and getting my flexibility back," said Curtis.Naturally, a period of adjustment was to be expected. But the return on investment, so to speak, is already evident."He's moving a lot better all over the ice," said Haberbusch.Meanwhile, as Curtis becomes more comfortable with each passing game, the Continentals are fighting for a playoff spot.Hamilton currently stands at 4-9-2 (3-6-1 NESCAC) and in seventh place in the conference, with crucial league matchups against Bowdoin, Colby, Tufts and Connecticut College among the remaining games."We're definitely in the playoff hunt," said Curtis. "We're kind of in the middle of the pack of the league, and we're all kind of separated by a couple points. I think we've just got to stay disciplined and work through the adversity we're going through and keep looking forward."Part of the adversity he refers to is the dry spell that his line has battled throughout the season.Curtis is currently fifth on the team in scoring with five goals and two assists, but there have been stretches when he and linemates Truman Landowski and Dominic Jancaterino have struggled to generate offense.Trying to find a way to spark the trio, Haberbusch made a switch several games ago, moving Curtis from his spot on the wing to center."He's very good on face-offs," said Haberbusch. "He's a big, strong body and he's good down low in the defensive zone, so we'd been toying with some other things and we never really found a center on his line. They've looked good and we've been happy with what we've seen so far. In most systems, and in ours, the center plays low with the defenseman, and he keeps good body positioning and keeps other teams from getting to the net."The scoring has started to come along. Curtis scored a goal last Saturday in a loss against Connecticut College, while Landowski, a freshman, has impressed with his play.But numbers only concern Curtis insofar as they add to the most essential counting stat — wins. A goal is a goal, whether it comes off his stick or another."You kind of always want to do more even if you're playing well," said Curtis. "There's always more you can do and you can keep reaching, but for me it's not really about my personal point production. It's about us making the playoffs and getting wins."Hamilton has qualified for the postseason every year since 2008, but was eliminated in the quarterfinals in each of the last two tournaments. A return to the postseason isn't automatic at this point, but is expected by the Continentals. And Curtis, who figured prominently in the last two playoff runs, appears ready to do so again. On two good legs this time."We usually have one or two freshman each year out of say eight that just kind of figure it out right away and make a seamless transition to college hockey, and in Pat's class it was him," said Haberbusch. "They're special players when they can figure it out that quickly. He's been an important guy from day one."

NotesAfter making 75 saves and helping the Babson College men's hockey team to a pair of road victories last weekend, sophomore goalie Jamie Murray was selected as the ECAC East Co-Goaltender of the Week. …After posting a pair of double-doubles and leading the Babson College men's basketball team to a split of its conference road games, junior John Wickey was selected as the NEWMAC Player of the Week. ...After averaging 15.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.0 steals, and 2.5 assists in a 2-0 week for Wellesley, Leslie Leong was named the NEWMAC women's basketball player of the week.Craig Gilvarg can be reached at 508-626-4405 or cgilvarg@wickedlocal.com. Follow him on Twitter @CraigGilvarg.

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